A professional association can be a tremendously powerful entity, or it can be a waste of the member's money. The judgement of this value is in the eye of the user. Unfortunately, so is much of the responsibility of engagement with other members, making use of available resources, and clearly seeing a link between membership and personal benefits, as well as benefits to the user's organization.
It is precisely this reason that websites for professional associations have such potential power and value for a professional organization.
Usability
Prioritizing Features for the User/Member
Strategy for Professional Association Websites
The first thing we do at Digital Methods Corporation when embarking on a new project is to ask some very simple questions. Even though often it seems that the answer is obvious, it is important to start with these questions to hear in the client's own words thier business vision and the challenges they face..
Building Association Websites
The professional association has been a mainstay of the business world since the great artisan guilds, and before.
Until recently, associations used chapter meetings, newsletters, publications, and the occasional convention tocreate community among members. Associations mainly functioned as a one way broadcasting medium to their members, and often offered some other member benefits - discounts, credit cards, resources etc.